* When the masc. form ends in an -e, there is no change. * The final consonant is pronounced on the masc. form.

Final Consonant Doubled

-el

-elle

cruel

cruelle

When an adjective has one of these endings, the ending of the feminine form is doubled. There is no change of pronunciation when changing from -el to -elle. -il is pronounced "ee" (as in keen), while -ille is similar, with a final yuh (pronounced like "ee" in keen with a "yuh" on the end: IPA /ij/). -on is pronounced oh(n) and -onne is pronounced ohn. -en is pronounced a(n) and -enne is pronounced ehn. -os is pronounced oh and -osse is pronounced ohs. -as is pronounced ah and -asse is pronounced ahs.

-il

-ille

gentil

gentille

-on

-onne

bon breton

bonne bretonne

-en

-enne

ancien parisien

ancienne parisienne

-os

-osse

gros

grosse

-as

-asse

bas

basse

-c change

-c

-che

blanc franc

blanche franche

-eur change

-eur

-euse

accrocheur prometteur

accrocheuse prometteuse

-eux change

-eux

-euse

furieux généreux

furieuse généreuse

-eux is pronounced ew (like dew) and -euse is pronounced ews.

-g change

-g

-gue

long

longue

-if change

-if

-ive

sportif actif

sportive active

er change

-er

-ère

étranger cher

étrangère chère

-er is pronounced ay and -ère is pronounced ehr, though exceptions such as "cher" exist in which both forms are pronounced with ehr.

In English, we say "her car" when the owner of the car is a woman and "his car" when the owner is a man. In French, they say "sa voiture" even if the owner is a male. It is not the owner who determines the gender of the possessive adjective but the object owned.